International News
Air Canada Flight Attendants Vow To Continue Strike, Hold Talks
Striking Air Canada flight attendants vowed Monday to defy another back-to-work order from the country’s labour tribunal, but resumed talks seeking to end a walkout that has cancelled travel for half a million people worldwide.
Roughly 10,000 flight attendants walked off the job after midnight Saturday, insisting the airline had failed to address their demands for higher wages and compensation for unpaid ground work, including during boarding.
Canada’s national carrier, which flies directly to 180 cities domestically and abroad, said the strike had forced cancellations impacting 500,000 people.
Over the weekend, Federal Labour Minister Patty Hajdu invoked a legal provision to halt the strike and force both sides into binding arbitration.
Following Hajdu’s intervention, the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), a regulatory tribunal, ordered the flight attendants back to work Sunday.
The flight attendants’ union said it would defy the order, forcing Air Canada to walk back plans to partially restore service.
CIRB regulators upped the pressure Monday.
It ordered the union “to resume the performance of their duties immediately and to refrain from engaging in unlawful strike activities,” Air Canada said in a statement.
The tribunal gave the Canadian Union of Public Employees until 12:00 pm (1600 GMT) to communicate to members that they “are required to resume the performance of their duties,” the carrier added.
Speaking after that deadline, CUPE president Mark Hancock told reporters the solution “has to be found at a bargaining table,” and that the union will not respect the tribunal’s ruling.
“None of us want to be in defiance of the law,” he said, but stressed the union would not waver in advocating for people asked to work hours on the ground during flight delays without “getting paid a dime.”
If Air Canada “thinks that planes will be flying this afternoon, they’re sorely mistaken,” Hancock said.
The union said later Monday that it had resumed talks with the airline as part of “continued attempts to reach a fair deal.”
The evening meetings were taking place in Toronto with the assistance of a mediator, William Kaplan, CUPE’s Air Canada component said in a statement on Facebook.
But it added that “at this time, the strike is still on, and the talks have just commenced.”
– Carney ‘disappointed’ –
Rafael Gomez, an industrial relations expert at the University of Toronto, told AFP the union may be on solid legal footing.
The provision “is written in such a way that it’s really for a situation where strikes have gone on a long time and there’s no way forward,” he said, suggesting that standard could not credibly apply to a strike that is just a few days old.
Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters Monday it was “disappointing” that eight months of negotiations between the carrier and union did not produce an agreement.
“We recognise very much the critical role that flight attendants play in keeping Canadians and their families safe as they travel,” he said.
“It is important that they’re compensated equitably.”
But, he added, Canada faced a situation where hundreds of thousands of citizens and visitors were facing travel uncertainty.
On Thursday, Air Canada detailed the terms offered to cabin crew, indicating a senior flight attendant would, on average, make CAN$87,000 ($65,000) by 2027.
CUPE has described Air Canada’s offers as “below inflation (and) below market value.”
In a statement issued before the strike began, the Business Council of Canada warned an Air Canada work stoppage would exacerbate the economic pinch already being felt from US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
AFP
Kylian Mbappe has significantly boosted his chances of winning the 2026 Ballon d’Or despite strong competition from the likes of Ousmane Dembélé, Harry Kane, and Lionel Messi.
The France captain has been electric at this World Cup, scoring eight goals in six games.
He was once again pivotal as France defeated Morocco 2-0 in the quarter-finals, opening the scoring after missing a first-half penalty.
Mbappe’s performances have seen him climb to the top of the Ballon d’Or power rankings, overtaking his French teammate Dembélé, England and Bayern Munich star Harry Kane, and Lionel Messi.
Mbappe has never won the award but came close in 2022-23, finishing third behind Erling Haaland and eventual winner Messi.
According to Polymarket, he now leads with a 28% chance of winning, ahead of Harry Kane (25.4%), Ousmane Dembélé (15%), and Lionel Messi (13%).
Kylian Mbappé has surpassed Harry Kane for 1st place in the Ballon d’Or rankings on Polymarket:
28% – Mbappé
25% – Kane
15% – Dembélé
13% – Messi
Senegalese player and former Liverpool reliable, Sadio Mane has announced his retirement from the Senegalese national team.
In a press release, the Al-Nasir and Senegalese striker writes in particular:
Know that I have sacrificed everything for this flag. I have given the best of myself and have always fought fiercely for our homeland.
Your constant support has been the driving force behind my success.
Tomorrow, it is with pleasure that I will put my experience at the service of the Nation, whether within a technical staff, on a coaching bench, or in governing bodies.
Paul Pogba’s spell at Monaco could be cut short after making just six appearances in an injury-plagued debut season.
Pogba joined the Ligue 1 outfit last June after his original four-year doping ban was reduced to 18 months.
The 33-year-old signed a two-year deal at Monaco, but his 2025-26 campaign proved to be a nightmare as he only started one match and played a grand total of just 115 minutes across all of his outings.
The former Manchester United and Juventus midfielder hoped to make France’s World Cup squad but those plans went awry due to his fitness issues and performance levels.
Pogba – who earned £290,000-per-week in his second spell at United – is reportedly earning below £44,000-per-week at Monaco, but despite the relatively low top-flight income he could be sold as the club look to lower their wage bill under the DNCG (French football’s financial watchdog) regulations.
Speaking to Get French Football News, Monaco CEO Thiago Scuro said: ‘It is a complicated topic because we have a lot of respect for Paul, for the person he is. Since he arrived, he has been very positive.
‘It is also true that, last year, the project didn’t work well because when we started with him in the summer, the expectations were very different to what happened. I think that we have to be fair with him, follow his preparation every week, how he will progress physically and technically and then it will be the manager’s decision.
‘We have the summer to see what level we will see from Pogba. He could [leave at the end of the summer]. With Paul, it has always been a very open and transparent relationship.
‘If, at some point, the expectations of the player are different to the expectations of the club, we will have to speak to find a solution. The performance will give all the answers that we need. Maybe he will stay, maybe he will leave.’
Pogba was emotional when he signed for Monaco last summer, describing his comeback as a second chance after what he called ‘a time of darkness’.
The midfielder told Daily Mail Sport in 2024 that he discovered news of his reduced ban while preparing for a film premiere, adding: ‘We went through hell. A time of darkness. But this is my second chance, I have to use it.’
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